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So I finally have the car back from the dealership after the head gasket replacement. It took so long because two valve shims were on back order for about 2 weeks. I asked for new head bolts to be installed but Toyota said the original bolts were reusable. (I thought torque-to-yield bolts were only good for one application.) I've been driving it lightly for 250 kilometers now and will continue breaking it in for the next 500 to 750 kilometers.
I originally asked about replacing the OEM head gaskets with aftermarket ones. They told me if they did that then my warranty wouldn't cover the issue if it happened again.
I guess the big test will be after running it hard during an upcoming autocross in January at which point I'll see if there's any sweet white smoke being blown or any significant loss of coolant.
My car has 44,500 km on it so I guess I'm good for one more head gasket replacement under warranty (100,000 km) at which point I'll seriously consider using different head bolts and gaskets.
Just to be clear, I've only tracked my car twice and ran maybe 12 autocross events. I've also regularly short changed the engine oil.
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